Ousting Morsi may restore investors' trust

Egyptian analysts expect investors to regain trust in their country, as profits of the Egyptian stock exchange reached 22.7 billion Egyptian pounds (over $3.2 billion) a day after the ouster of president Mohamed Morsi.

The hike in the stock market was described by observers as "noteworthy", as its losses in the first six months of 2013 was estimated at 54.4 billion Egyptian pounds ($7.7 billion), when the country was engulfed in heated unrest and political division between pro-Morsi Islamists and anti-Morsi liberals, Xinhua reported.

Ehab al-Desouky, head of the Economic Center of Sadat Academy, said the stock exchange's profit was a "practical reaction" to the new trend in Egypt after Morsi's ouster.

"The stock exchange's hike depends on the investing decision, and the investing decision depends on the investor's trust in the future more than his trust in the present, which means that the bourse's rise today reflects the investors' mounting hope about Egypt's future after ousting the one year-lasted regime," Desouky said.

Egypt's armed forces removed Morsi from his post Wednesday, and put a roadmap for the transitional period, including forming a national government with broadened powers, suspending the current constitution, and forming a commission to prepare for constitutional amendments.

Desouky said the roadmap "assured" the investors about the "near future" of Egypt, as the first thing the investors care is "stability".

However, he believes that ending the political conflict and putting a roadmap "aren't enough" for assuring the investors.

"Ending the political unrest, appointing an interim president, and putting a roadmap can only ensure the investors in the 'short term'. What Egypt urgently needs now to encourage investments is a 'powerful cabinet' for the sake of the long-term planning," the expert said.

Echoing Desouky's view, banking expert Bassant Fahmy said the stock exchange's rise was a "promising" sign about the investors' belief in a stabilised future.

"This elevation is a good indication for the investors' trust in Egypt's situation, but forming a cabinet of 'proficient' ministers is much more important for the investors than assigning a new interim president," Fahmy said.

He said the cabinet is directly responsible for putting forward policies to facilitate the investors' work and for meeting peoples' aspirations to end their "indignation".

Fahmy also said that the security situation would be "much better" after ousting Morsi, and would therefore be another key reason for investors to come in.

"Fragile security affected the investors' turnout during Morsi's time, and it was out of the weak management of his loyal cabinet. I believe that all faults of the former regime will be avoided in the future," said Fahmy.